The Hotel Paper Series
by kyootmunchkin
Summary: Literati. Inspired by Michelle Branch's 'Hotel Paper' album. PG-13 for language and sexual inferences.
1. Disclaimer

**Disclaimer:** I do not own 'Gilmore Girls'. Nor am I a creator, an actor or much of anything that relates to the creation of the show. I am only a fan. A fairly obsessed one at that. If there's some sort of law that says I can't write my own endings, and whatnots, using the 'Gilmore Girls' characters then … you'd better tell all the other thousand or so writers out there. We'll find you, you evil lawmaker you! ;)  
  
Thanks to gilmore-girls.net for the transcripts used throughout this fanfic, and to Michelle Branch for writing such awesome songs that they had to be fanfic-ed. The lyrics used throughout this fanfic are all copyrighted, patented and whatever other word to Michelle Branch and Co.  
   
I hope you like this fanfiction and if it tickles your fancy enough, maybe you could review it. No pressure. Have a great day! :D  
  
P.S. If you have any criticism or whatnot, please feel free to e-mail it to me. I would like to know what I can do to improve this crapshack of a fanfiction.  
  
Notes:  
  
* 'Are You Happy Now?' – The poem by Allen Ginsberg is titled 'Song' and is copyrighted to Allen Ginsberg and City Lights Bookstore.

  
  
  



	2. Prologue

Prologue  
  


_Candy Land_. That was Jess's imminent thought upon stepping off the Greyhound bus and into the unadulterated air of Stars Hollow. _What the hell am I supposed to do here? Wear white after Labor Day? Something as trivial as that would actually startle this two-dimensional town. Great._ Luke rose from the bench and began walking towards Jess. _Great. Flannel-Man is my "guardian"._  
  
"Jess," Luke stated.  
  
"Luke," Jess replied.  
  
_Jesus, say something,_ Luke thought. "Okay, so uh…" Luke had nothing more to say, he had already voiced his thoughts. Instead, he began walking off towards the diner.  
  
_My, my. We are verbose. _Jess thought, sarcastically. _Not a man of many words. Good, as long as we've got _something_ in common._ Jess leaned down to retrieve his belongings and followed silently.  
___________________________________________________________________  
  


As Jess and Luke turned the corner, Jess noticed the Williams Hardware sign. He contemplated asking Luke about it but, instead, continued walking. The bell atop the door of 'Luke's Diner' jingled as Luke entered, followed immediately by Jess.  They wordlessly mounted the stairs to the apartment above the diner.

"Well, here we are. It's pretty simple. You know, this is the room. That's my bed, that's your, uh, bed for now, but the sheets are new. There's the bathroom, there's the closet, there's the dresser, the phone, and over there is the kitchen. I've got Frosted Flakes," Luke listed.

"Wow, that's grrrrreat," Jess remarked, sarcastically portraying Tony the Tiger.

_Ok, so the kid is definitely not a talker. _"So, is that all your stuff?" Luke questioned. 

"Yup," Jess responded nonchalantly. _God, any more questions officer?_

"Not much there," Luke commented. _God, way to keep to monosyllabic words. I feel like I should be questioning you under one of those cop lamps you see in NYPD Blue or something._

"Well, Lizzie's sending the rest later," Jess retorted. _Jesus do I need to get out of here!_

"So, you need some help?" Luke asked. _Say no, say no, say— _

"Nope."

_Oh thank God. _"Okay, uh, I have to get back to the diner. I'm gonna close up at ten tonight, so I thought—"

"See you at ten."

"But wait, you need keys." 

"No I don't," Jess stated as he rushed out the door.

"I so don't want to know why," Luke said to no one in particular.  
___________________________________________________________________  
_   
Wow, so, apparently three left turns gets me back to the center of this God-awful town. Joy._ Jess thought as he watched his feet taking unwanted steps back to the diner.

The bell jingled once again as Jess entered the diner. Luke and Lorelai looked toward the door to see who entered. Luke's eyes refocused in recognition of the stranger entering his diner.

"Jess, hey, good. I'd like you to meet someone," Luke said.

"Hey. Hi, I'm Lorelai. I just wanted to meet you before Luke had a chance to fill your head with all kinds of little lies about me," Lorelai declared, a bit too cheerily for Jess.

"Hi," Jess stated. 

"You know, you should meet my daughter. She's about your age. She can show you where all the good wilding goes on. . . .Okay, well, it's nice to meet you. I hope you like it here. . . . . So, class dismissed," Lorelai concluded – _my we're a talker – _dulled by her experience with Jess. 

"Uh, are you hungry 'cause I can…" Luke's effort of making more conversation was cut off my Jess's feet trudging up the stairs.

"So that's Jess?" Lorelai asked, trying with difficulty to not make a demeaning remark. 

"Yup."

"Very chatty."

"He's adjusting. He just got here. He probably just went out and realized there are twelve stores in this town devoted entirely to peddling porcelain unicorns. I've lived in this town my entire life, I still can't believe it," Luke answered.

_Yeah, that's it._ Luke and Lorelai thought. 

"I'm sure that's it," Lorelai responded. 

"He'll be fine in a few days."

A bell and a light were going off in Lorelai's head. Her eyes twinkled and she grinned at Luke, "hey, listen, I have a fabulous idea. What are you doing tomorrow night?"

"Why?" Luke asked, apprehensively. 

"Why don't you and Jess come over for dinner?"

"Dinner?" _With who? Me and my nonexistent nephew?_

"Sookie will cook, Rory will be there. It'll be a little 'Hey, welcome to Stars Hollow and see, everyone here's not straight out of a Fellini film' kind of an evening." Lorelai affirmed, pleased with her idea. 

"Okay, that would be nice, thanks," said Luke, clearly flustered by such a kind gesture.

"You're welcome," Lorelai replied, still smiling. 

A thought occurred to Luke. "You won't bring up the bed?"

Lorelai's smiled widened. "Oh no, I'll definitely bring up the bed."

Luke, exasperated with how well he could predict Lorelai Gilmore, walked away.  
___________________________________________________________________  
  
[Jess is alone in the apartment]  
  
_I need a cigarette,_ Jess decided. He fiddled around in his left breast pocket and produced a slender Marlboro cigarette. He searched through is pants and found his lighter. He lit the cigarette that was hanging loosely from his lips and inhaled. _Thank God. Now where the hell are those cards I had?_ Jess rummaged through his bag and finally found a deck of blue checkered cards. He began shuffling when Luke entered.

"So you get unpacked?" Luke asked. _Is he _smoking_? No wonder Liz didn't want him. He's a kid that doesn't talk and probably goes through a pack a day._

"Yup."

_Back to the monosyllables. _"Get enough space in the closet?"

"Plenty."

"You hungry?"

_And that makes, _"eighteen."

"What?" Luke asked, confused.

"Just counting how many questions 'til we hit twenty."

"Okay, never mind." _I can see we're going to get along _great_, _Luke thought. The phone rings. Luke, thankful for some sort of interruption, goes to answer it. "Yeah? Yeah, Liz, he got here fine."

"Got here at ten this morning," Jess remarked, dully. 

"Okay, hang on a sec," Luke said into the phone. He removed the earpiece from his ear and held the phone out to Jess.  "Jess?"

"Pass."

"Jess, come on," Luke persisted.

"Nope."

"What am I supposed to tell her?"

"Tell her I gotta take another crack at that closet. You know, I think I hung my Tool T-shirt next to my Metallica T-shirt and they don't really get along."

_Smart ass. _"You really want me to tell her that?"

"You think a different band combo would sell it more?" Jess asked, clearly not caring about the situation at hand.

_If only whipping were allowed in Connecticut._ Luke returned to the phone, "yeah, Liz, Jess is gonna have to call you back. Yeah, he's helping me out with a shelf thing and his hand are full…Yeah, I'll tell him. Okay, bye. [hangs up] She said to tell you that your stuff will be here on Friday." 

"Great, we'll have a party."

"You know, your mom thinks this is. . .you know, for the best and for your own good and. . . Anyhow, I guess you'll just call her when you feel like it." 

"You wanna play some poker? Five bucks a hand?"

"No."

"Ten?"

"No." 

"I can't go any higher than ten."

"Jess."

_Let's see how many buttons I can push today. _"Okay, fifteen."

"Yeah, I don't wanna play poker."

"You sure?"

"I'm sure."

"Okie dokie." _Well, that was a lost cause._

"So, listen, Lorelai - you met her today, remember? Anyhow, um, she invited us to her house tomorrow night for dinner. Her daughter Rory, who you didn't meet but you'll like 'cause she's a lot like Lorelai, but she's got a slightly tighter grasp on reality. Anyhow, she'll be there, and you know, it'd be a…I don't know, it'd be a chance for you to meet more people and so I, I said yes." Luke finished rather uncomfortably.

_Oh God. He can't be serious. I'm getting out of here._ And without a word, he grabbed his coat and left.  
___________________________________________________________________  
  
[Lorelai opens the front door, Luke and Jess are standing there.] 

"Hey, perfect timing. Sookie's about to break her own record for the most food served outside the Roman Empire," Lorelai said, again, too perky for Jess's liking.

"Sounds great." Luke smiled, then immediately elbowed Jess.

"Sure does," Jess iterated grudgingly.

_And then there was one. _"So, come on in," Lorelai said as she gestured toward the living room.

Luke and Jess enter, only to separate; Jess into the living room and Luke staying behind to continue talking with Lorelai.

"Sorry we're a little late. We had a little misunderstanding about what time we're actually supposed to leave to come here," Luke apologized.

_I'm sure. _"It's okay. How's it going?"

"Oh, well, not bad." _I'm going to regret telling her this. "_Oh, the bed popped."

_Keep a straight face Gilmore. _"Yikes. Was anyone in it?"

"Me."

"You?" Lorelai inquired, shocked.

"Yeah, I let him take the real one." 

"Well, that was very nice of you." Lorelai saw Jess glancing at the photos on the fireplace mantle. "Hey Jess," she called, "wanna come on in the kitchen?"

Jess reluctantly followed Lorelai and Luke into the kitchen.

"Sookie, Jackson, I want you to meet Luke's nephew. This is Jess." Lorelai presented him to her best friend, Sookie, and her boyfriend, Jackson.

"Do you eat cheese?" Sookie questioned, randomly.

"What?" Jess replied, taken aback.

"Oh my God, this is the greatest lemon I have ever grown. I mean, this is a great lemon. Sookie, you gotta try this lemon. Isn't it a great lemon?" Jackson revered and displayed it to his unenthusiastic audience.

"That is a great lemon," Sookie said. Obviously trying to keep the conversation as sane as it could be.

"Try it, it's a Meyer." Jackson thrusted the lemon towards Sookie.

"Jackson grows fruit and then scares people with it." Lorelai stated, quickly; trying to keep Jess's questioning and possibly revolting glances at bay. _Ok, so …_ "Rory, they're here," Lorelai called.

Rory, hearing her mother's call, "coming!"

Jess, in great desire of leaving his current company, left to find the source of the voice. _Jesus. And I thought the town was whacked with mother-daughter dress-alikes. Now there's a guy talking about the beauty of lemons. Where the _hell _didn't that voice come from?_ He found a room with a girl about his age in it. She had brown, shoulder-length hair. She was wearing a cream-colored cardigan and was typing at a laptop. She was clearly trying to finish something in a hurry. She spotted Jess. "Hey," said Rory.

Taking Rory's acknowledgement of him, he uttered a brief 'hey' and entered her room.

"I'm Rory." Rory smiled.

"Yeah, I figured."

"Nice to meet you."

_Um, yeah. Well, well … _Jess noted Rory's overflowing bookshelf. "Wow, aren't we hooked on phonics," he stated, sardonically. 

"Oh, I read a lot. Do you read?" He intrigued her for some reason. She couldn't figure out why. He had barely spoken ten words to her.

_More than you'll know. _"Not much," he replied. Fingering through the books, he removed one.

Rory caught a glimpse of the title of the measly looking book. '_HOWL and Other Poems', good choice. Ah, the Beat Generation…_"I could loan you that if you want. It's great," Rory offered kindly.

_So she reads Ginsberg, huh? At least I know she reads something with substance. And now she's offering to let me borrow it – my, my. What a kind soul. _As Jess places the book down he responds indifferently, "no thanks."

"Well, if you change your mind…" Rory trailed off. They were left to stare at each other.

"[Lorelai speaks from the doorway] Okay, we really need to get Jackson away from the lemons now, so we're moving the feast in the living room," Lorelai stated hurriedly before rushing away.  
  
_She's not kidding about that,_ Rory thought to herself. She smirked a little before answering, "be right there!"

Their eye contact broke at the sound of her voice. Jess's gaze diverted to the windows.

"So do these open?" He asked longingly.

_Ok, mildly odd question. _"Oh yeah, you just have to unlatch them and then push."__

"Great. Shall we?"

Confused at his question, she returned with one of her own. "Shall we what?"

"Bail," Jess responded, edging towards the window.

_What?! _"No," Rory stated firmly.

"Why?"

"Because it's Tuesday night in Stars Hollow. There's nowhere to bail to. The 24-hour mini-mart just closed twenty minutes ago."

_You've got to be kidding me. _"So we'll walk around or sit on a bench and stare at our shoes." _We need to haul some ass and get of here already!_

_Well if you're not a glutton for rudeness. _"Look, Sookie just made a ton of really great food, and I'm starving and though it may not seem like it right at this moment, it's gonna be fun. Trust me."

"I don't even know you."__

Rory was surprised to have her intentions questioned so blatantly.  "Well, don't I look trustworthy?" she countered.

"Maybe."

"Okay, good. Let's eat." _Well that's as settled as it'll get._ Rory walked towards the kitchen, with Jess direcly behind her. [In the kitchen] You want a soda?"

"Oh, I'll get it." _Thank God. Maybe the mom will have a beer. Everything's getting to Disney for me._

"Okay." Rory retrieved a soda from the refrigerator and ambled off towards the living room.  When she was out of sight, Jess grabbed a Heineken bottle from the refrigerator and with a glance over his shoulders, walked out the back door.  
___________________________________________________________________  
  
[A table is set up in the living room. Everyone stands around it loading up his or her plates.]

As Rory entered the living room, she observed the dining table astray from its usual location. Lorelai, Luke, Sookie and Jackson were all piling food onto their plates. Lorelai spotted Rory entering the living room without Jess. "Hey Rory, where's Jess?"

"He's getting a soda."

"Here." Lorelai shoved a plate brimming with food at Rory.

"I'm sorry, you must've mistaken me for you." Rory joked.

"Ooh, too much?" Lorelai quipped.

"Oh, I forgot the garlic bread!" Sookie declared.

"I'll get it," Lorelai responded.

Heading straight for the oven, she takes out the bread and notes a lack of Jess in the kitchen. She places the bread upon the counter and exits out the back door.  She sees Jess on the back porch about to open the beer. _Dammit! I knew this kid was bad business. Be nice. For Luke's sake._

Just before Jess's lips touched the opening of the bottle, Lorelai lunged for the bottle and grasped it. "Oh, for me, hey, thanks," she said before taking a sip. "Refreshing. So what, you're not hungry?"

"Not really," Jess retorted.

"Well, Sookie made you some grilled cheese if you don't like pot roast."

"Oh, well, if I'd had known that…" Jess noted, derisively.

_God you remind me so much of me at your age. Full of attitude. Fine, if you want to be that way… _"Let me guess, you don't want to be here?"

"Doesn't matter." _Wow, Luke's little wannabe girlfriend can see can she?_

"I mean, here in Stars Hollow."__

_My, you're a fast one, aren't you? _Jess thought, sarcastically.  The sarcasm carried over into his response, "well geez, Ms. Gilmore, why would anyone not want to be here in Stars Hollow? That just sounds plum crazy."

_This is too much. _"Ugh, Jess, let me give you a little advice. The whole 'my parents don't get me' thing, I've been there."

"You have, huh?" Jess rejoined, mildly interested.

"Yes, I have. I've also done the 'chip on my shoulder' bit. Ooh, and the surly, sarcastic, 'the world can bite my ass' bit, and let me tell you, I mastered them all, in heels, yet. And everything you're feeling might be totally justified, maybe you are getting screwed. But Luke is a great guy. He's very special, and he really wants to take care of you and make things right for you. You're incredibly lucky to have him. If you give this situation half a chance, you might be surprised at how good it can be, how much you like living here, and how comfortable it feels to have someone like Luke you can really depend on."

_Blah, blah, blah. Let me guess, you're little Miss-Know-It-All just because you _think _ you know what the hell you're talking about? Jesus, _"are you sleeping with him or something?"

_What?! _"Excuse me? 

"I don't know. The whole starry eyed 'you're so much better off, just give it a chance' speech. You're either really naïve, or you're getting some." Jess smirked to himself. _More buttons I can push today._

Jess was getting on Lorelai's nerves. Big time. "Ugh. There have been very few moments in my life where I have actually wished I had one of those enormous cream pies you can just smash in someone's face, but this is definitely one of them."

"Well, now, that's not very neighborly."

"Hey, you know what, this is my house, and I choose how I get talked to in it, ha ha."

Jess was getting frustrated. "You know, you don't know anything about me," Jess remarked through gritted teeth. "Or my life, or my mom, or Luke, so why don't you Doctor Laura someone else." He had ended up shouting the last half.

"I'm going inside, stay out of my fridge." She had had it. She left before she would do something she would regret later. _Well, not really regret. Just, not be able to revel in when people ask what happened to the new kid…  
___________________________________________________________________  
  
_[Luke is waiting out front as Jess walks out of a building with 'Stars Hollow High School' written across it.] 

"Hey. How was school?" They begin walking.

"Great."

"You learn anything good?"

"Oh yeah, tons of things. I've got gold stars plastered all over my forehead."

"I had an interesting call today. Wanna know who it was from?"

"Not really."

"It was from Taylor Doose, you know he owns the market."

"If you say so." _Like I care_.

"He said you came in today."

_Shit_. "He did?"

"And he said you took some money out of a little donation cup to help repair the bridge. I told him he was crazy, you wouldn't do that, you weren't a thief, that he was just trying to start trouble, then I hung up on him. But don't get me wrong, I enjoy hanging up on Taylor, and he is crazy, but I was just wondering if maybe any of the other things he said were true."

"What do you think?" _Good one, Mariano. Be vague. Keep everything at your fingertips._

"I think that if you tell me that what he's saying is not true, then I'm gonna believe it's not true."

_Ha! That was too easy. _"Okay, it's not true."

"That doesn't sound very convincing."

_God, I've _so_ had enough of this boring-as-hell-morbid-fairy-tale town. _Angered by Luke's insinuation, Jess asserted, "look, what exactly do you want from me? You bring me here to this place, you put me in a school that says the Pledge of Allegiance in six different languages, two of which I've never heard of before. You take me away from my home, my friends, and now you want what from me?"

Shocked, "I'm trying to help you."

Still filled with annoyance, "well, stop trying. Stop talking to me, stop following me, and stop asking me questions. Just stop." At the word 'stop', both Luke and Jess came to a halt. Jess saw they had stopped at a bridge.

"That's what you want?" Luke heatedly.  Jess observed a vein in Luke's head, pumping blood at an extremely quick-paced rate.

"Yes."__

"That's really what you want?"

"Yes."

"Fine, you got it."

"Thank you."__

"You're welcome."

Luke begins walking towards the diner and Jess follows, only to quicken his pace to walk side-by-side with Luke. _Thank God_, Jess thought to himself. _Now I might actually have some fu_—his thoughts were cut off when Luke, evidently still filled with rage, pushed Jess into the lake.  
___________________________________________________________________  
  
[In the apartment.] 

_Frickin' 'a'. My uncle is deranged. The town he lives in is on some sort of transparent drug that you're given at birth and I can't find my goddamn lighter!_  Frustrated at not being able to find his lighter, he pushed his belongings off of his bed; only to find the lighter under them.  He pulls a cigarette out of the same breast pocket as before and lights it. He puffs irritably, lost in his own thoughts.

Suddenly, Luke rushes in with a stuffed plastic bag and drops it harshly on the bed. "Okay, we got the patch, the gum, hypnosis tapes, Chinese herbs, self-help books, and several pictures of diseased lungs to hang on the fridge. Pretty, huh?" Luke ranted at Jess, staring at the cigarette in his mouth. "This," he says as he pulls the cigarette out of Jess's mouth, "is done." And he continues to put he cigarette out.

"Hey!" Jess exclaimed, aggravated.

"You will get up, you will go to school, you will come home, you will work in the diner until closing, you will do your homework and then you will go to bed," Luke continued ranting. He began opening random doors and sifting through Jess's belongings. Just as Jess was about to berate Luke for invasion of privacy, Luke asked, "where's the gnome?"

"The what?" _What gnome? Oh! That ugly thing I stole from that lawn. That's a _gnome_?_

Luke had found Pierpont in the closet. Seeing the happy gnome only aided Luke's tirade.  "The weekends are for chores and selected pre-approved outings, i.e. cavalla studies, freeway beautification projects, Color-Me-Mine pottery painting, all discussible options. You will not steal, you will pay back Taylor Doose, you will graduate for high school, and you will return Pierpont," Luke gestured to the gnome in his hand that he had apparently been shaking at Jess, "to his yard."

"You can't just—"

"I can just. I am not letting you just fall off the face of the earth. You will not drift, I won't let it happen. Now I don't know if this is the right way to handle this, but this is the way it's being handled, and that my friend, is the end of this discussion." Luke, quite pleased with himself, finally ended his first lecture; only to have Jess get up and begin marching for the door. "Where are you going?"

Jess shouted an 'out' back at Luke before slamming the door behind him. 

Luke, reminiscing to a similar situation, spoke to the room again. "Well, at least I asked."  
___________________________________________________________________  
  
Jess is walking down the street. _Livid. Irate. Furious. Those are just some of the _nice_ adjectives I've got to describe how _I'm_ feeling._ _Now, let's move on to adjectives that describe my no good, son of a— _Jess's thoughts are cut off as Rory comes into his view.  She has just exited a store and is waving goodbye to clerk. Jess takes this opportunity to walk over to her and make some conversation.

"Hey," Jess says, coolly.

"Hey yourself."

"What are you doing out here?"

"I needed something for school. What about you?"

"Oh yeah, same thing."

"Uh huh." _Sure you were._ "So, that was quite a disappearing act you pulled the other night."

_Huh, yeah well, _"potlucks and Tupperware parties aren't really my thing."

"Too cool for school, huh?" Rory smiled at her own remark.

"Yes, that is me." Jess replied, smirking at Rory's comment.  They came to a stop.

"What are you doing?" Rory gave a fleeting look at Jess's hands – they were constantly moving.

"Oh this?" He glanced swiftly at his hands before returning his gaze back to Rory. "Nothing," and as he said this, he made an illusion with a coin. "Just another little disappearing act," he commented with a little grin.

"Little tip?" Rory posed.

"Yeah?" Jess was all ears. He couldn't believe how much attention he had placed on her. It was almost worrying him. Almost.

"If you ever want to speak to me again, don't pull that out of my ear."

Jess inwardly chuckled. _She's got a mind of her own. And she speaks it. Nothing too new. Although, she does speak with intelligence in her voice. _"So I assume the nose is off limits too?"

"Any place you wouldn't naturally find a coin, let's leave it that way." Rory smiled and Jess nodded.

"So what are you doing now?" Jess asked as Rory began walking off.

"I have some homework to finish."

"Okay, then I'll leave you this last little trick." He pulled '_HOWL and Other Poems_' from his pant pocket and handed it to Rory.

"You bought a copy? I told you I'd lend you mine."

"It is yours."

"You stole my book." It wasn't a question. It was a frank statement.

"Nope, borrowed it," Jess countered at her surprised look.

"Okay, that's not called a trick, that's called a felony."

"I just wanted to put some notes in the margins for you." Jess shrugged.

"What?" Rory was taken aback.  She grabbed the book from Jess's hands and began flipping through the pages. "You've read this before."

"About forty times."__

Startled she said, "I thought you said you didn't read much."

"Well," Jess began rocking back and forth on the balls of his feet, "what is much?" He could tell he had startled her. He liked that thought. "Goodnight Rory."

"Goodnight Dodger."

"Dodger?" Jess inquired, perplexed.

"Figure it out," Rory replied, distractedly.  She began walking away, already engrossed in the Jess's notes.

The answer dawned on him. "Oliver Twist," Jess called to her back.

Rory turned around sharply and looked Jess directly in the eye. She smiled and nodded. She returned to her book and he to his tricks. Both left each other, equally absorbed in their own thoughts. Both subconsciously contemplating their next literary quips for their next meeting. 


	3. Are You Happy Now?

Are You Happy Now?  
  


A number of months had passed since their first tentative meeting and neither could stop their thoughts from wandering towards that night.  
  
"Goodnight, Dodger," continued to ring in Jess's head and would often leave him tossing and turning in his sleep.  He would awaken in the night, frustrated by a girl he barely knew. _You know her all right. You know that she reads Ginsberg, and understands it. You know she appreciates those notes you left for her. You know that she tucks her hair behind her ears when she's nervous. You know that you are resembling a stalker.  
  
_"Jesus already!" Jess muttered to himself. "I need a glass of water." He got up slowly, as not to wake Luke, and walked towards the kitchen. He grabbed a glass out of the cabinet above the sink and poured himself some water from the tap. When the glass was full with water, Jess downed the water in three gulps. Surprised by his own thirst, he sat down on one of the wooden chairs tucked neatly towards the dining table. _If you could even call it that_. _Jesus, Mary and Joseph. I need to get this girl out of my head.  
  
_With constant thoughts of Rory now keeping him utterly awake, Jess decided to read.  Jess glided towards his bookshelf. _I knew those sixteen years in New York would teach me something_. With an ethereal glow from the moon shining through the apartment's windows, it wasn't difficult for Jess to find the novel he was searching for. _'HOWL and Other Poems'_. The flimsy book was now more tattered and used than ever. It was only 'tattered' before he came to Stars Hollow. After "borrowing" Rory's copy and leaving his own Twain-like notes within the margins, Jess decided it was time to reread his own. Of course, since that night, he had been rereading Ginsberg religiously. It was his new Bible._ If I was religious and all. It's really getting unhealthy Mariano, the way you pine for this girl like there's no tomorrow.  You know she's got a boyfriend. He's the size of a goddamn Redwood tree! You know what? Stop talking to yourself and read for Christ's sake. _Jess did as he was told.

_The weight of the world  
          is love.  
Under the burden  
          of solitude,  
under the burden  
          of dissatisfaction  
  
          the weight,  
the weight we carry  
          is love.  
  
_As Jess read to himself, once more his thoughts returned to Rory. _Ginsberg, how could you articulate this exact emotion into such tangible and comprehensible words? I can barely … identify it and here you are preaching it to the world. If only I had understood back then, but what am I talking about? It sounds as if I'm in love with this girl that I've only had one _actual_ conversation with. And  she _surely_ doesn't  know a thing about me. She's this pure virgin in white, unsullied dresses with that ridiculously luminescent halo atop her head and me? I'm surely no devil with horns and a pitchfork but I'm definitely not up to her level. Hell, I barely stand on the same level as scum. _Jess was getting angry and frustrated. Who was this girl to make Jess think these things? _You don't even know her! Don't waste your time thinking stupid things, work on getting the town in a fuss. Listen to yourself Mariano. You just thought the word 'fuss'. Since when did you say 'fuss'? Since it's three, _Jess refocused his eyes towards the bright red numbers on the microwave, _thirteen in the morning. Jesus. You need sleep. Not only are you talking to yourself, but you're identifying the fact that you're talking to yourself._  
  
Jess yawned as he trudged himself in the direction of his bed, he had one lasting thought. _You can't run away from yourself…  
____________________________________________________________________  
  
[It is now winter in Stars Hollow. More months have passed since that night. Currently, Rory owes Jess an egg roll and they are at the acclaimed Bracebridge dinner at the Independence Inn.]  
  
Rory saw Dean and Clara enter the sleigh and couldn't help but sigh.  As she trekked herself over to the line of people awaiting their own sleigh ride, her thoughts began drifting to a certain broody brunette. _Why would he do something like that? For me, no less? Maybe he's attempting to tarnish my great name in this town._ "Yeah," Rory said to herself, dejectedly, "_that's_ it."  
  
Rory, lost in her thoughts, did not notice Jess atop the Independence Inn porch.  He was evidently staring at her. _It's so easy. She doesn't even see. _Jess reflected. _Looks like she's alone, maybe I can— _And before Jess could think another thought, his feet had already dragged him towards her sleigh.  
  
"That it miss?" The driver of the sleigh inquired.  
  
Stirred from her thoughts, Rory realized it was her turn.  Climbing into the sleigh, she replied, "I guess I'm alone."  
  
The sleigh began moving.  The ground and trees were covered with pristine snow. Under the moonlight, Stars Hollow seemed to glimmer. _I love this place_, Rory thought. Her thoughts were put aside when Jess jumped into the seat beside Rory.  
  
"What are you doing?" Rory asked, harshly.  
  
"Well, I heard it was two to a sleigh - no more, no less. You were breaking the rules," Jess responded, while pointing his index finger at her.  
  
"You could've hurt yourself," she stated in a matter-of-fact tone.  
  
"I live on the edge. I can jump out if you want."  
  
"Doesn't matter to me."  
  
"Are you mad at me or something?"  
  
"What do you think?" Rory remarked, heatedly.  
  
"I can't read your mind." Jess replied coolly.

"You got into a fight with Dean."  
  
"Dean?" _Now where does that name ring a bell?_  
  
"My boyfriend."  
  
"Ah." _The Redwood._ "He's still your boyfriend?"  
  
"Okay, you can jump out now."

"Fine." He removed the quilt from his lap, grabbed the side of the sleigh, and positioned himself to jump.  
  
_Ohmigod. What _is_ he doing? He's not actually going to jump is he? What if he hurts himself? _"Wait!"  
  
"Yes, milady?" Jess asked, with a quizzical smirk.

Rory was obviously wondering the same thing. Why had she stopped him? _It's not like you care._ Either way, she had to find some sort of excuse to cover her slight seizure. _That's the only explanation. My brain was having a seizure and, it seems that, when I seizure, I scream 'wait'. Ok, good to know for future reference. _"Before you reach your untimely death, I'd like to know why you were fighting my boyfriend." _Nice save, Gilmore._  
  
"I wasn't fighting him. I was fighting someone else. He jumped in on his own."  
  
"He was trying to help you," Rory defended.  
  
"Oh, he should go into government service if he's so interested in helping people. But me, he can stop worrying about." Jess stated simply.  
  
Rory couldn't help but wonder.  _Is he as tough as he seems? If so, who could he have been fighting? The most 'gangster' like person we have in town is Chuck Presby. He's a total Buzz Gunderson. Acting tough to save what little reputation and face he has. _"Why were you fighting in the first place?"  
  
"'Cause Chuck Presby's a jerk."  
  
_Huh. _"You were fighting Chuck Presby?"  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"Oh, he is a jerk."  
  
_You're not kidding. That stupid ass said New Yorkers have no idea what their doing. Of course he was wrong and I showed him by giving him a left hook to his jaw. Let's see if the idiot can even pronounce 'New York.' _"This whole town is weird and full of jerks."  
  
"Then why are you still here?" Rory asked, mildly insulted.  
  
"What do you mean?" Jess questioned, truly puzzled.  
  
"I mean, school's out and you don't like it here, so why don't you just go home?"  
  
Comprehension dawned on him. _Rory Gilmore, if you only knew._ "My mom didn't want me to."  
  
"I don't believe that."  
  
"That's your right, I guess."  
  
"Did Luke say she didn't want you to?"  
  
_Right, Luke. The one that told my mother I was helping him with shelves. Like I would believe him… _"Luke told me it was his idea that I should stay. It wasn't his idea."  
  
As their sleigh turned a corner, they had reached the center of the town.  The spotless snow was covered with snowpeople.  _A few decent attempts at snowpeople,_ Jess thought.  "That's good," said Jess, pointing at an eccentric looking snowwoman.  She had a black wig atop her head with an intense pink cardigan.  
  
"What?"  
  
"Your snowman. Snowwoman, actually."  
  
"You know which one is ours?" Rory asked with a genuine smile.  
  
"It definitely has the most personality. Kind of looks like Bjork."  
  
Rory's smile widened. "That's what we were going for."  
  
"Yeah?" Jess commented, amused at how giddy she appeared to be getting.  
  
Rory suddenly became crestfallen when the sleigh rode by the elaborate but ostentatious snowman resembling Ebenezer Scrooge. "But everyone thinks the one on the end is gonna be the winner."  
  
"Really? It's so overdone."  
  
"I agree."  
  
"You should win."  
  
"No argument."  
  
_We get along well. Considering this is our second conversation, I'd say we're doing pretty well. _"Hey, what do you and Dean talk about?" _Way to ruin things, Mariano._  
  
"What?" Rory was flustered by the arbitrariness of the question, but most importantly, by the question itself.  
  
Jess could see Rory was becoming uncomfortable. _Nice one, really. You just couldn't leave well enough alone could you? _He tried to alleviate the situation by asking, "I mean, does he know Bjork?"  
  
_Well, um, sure. Way to be articulate there Rory. Mom would be so proud to know that all the money she's spending for Chilton is coming in handy in your vast vocabulary. _"I've played him some stuff."  
  
Jess was touching a nerve and he knew it. He persisted. "Hm. So you got a teacher-student thing going?"   
  
Rory was annoyed. _He's doing this on purpose_. "Stop."  
  
Jess smirked. He was getting somewhere. "No, really, I'm curious. What do you guys talk about?"  
  
_Fine, if you want to pester, I'll just answer vaguely and indiscreetly. _"Everything."  
  
"Like?"  
  
"Just everything, tons of stuff, whatever."  
  
"It's just in the brief non-pugilistic time I've spent with him in class, he just doesn't seem like your kind of guy."  
  
"Well, he is my kind of guy. He's exactly my kind of guy." Was she telling herself lies? Or was this the truth? _Maybe_, she thought, _these lies will become the truth._  
  
"Okay." _Well, could you look me in the eye and tell me you're happy with him? _"I guess I don't know him that well."  
  
"You don't. You don't." With that, Rory turned away. _What am I thinking? Of course he's my kind of guy…_

_Didn't think so, _Jess thought.  And they rode back to the Inn in comfortably awkward silence.  
___________________________________________________________________  
  
Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep. [A smacking sound is heard.] Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep.  
  
"Dammit! Shut off!" Lorelai screamed.  She was trying, with no avail, to turn off the alarm clock that displayed a time of 6:02. "_Ugh_! I can't believe you let me do something as stupid as this, Rory."  
  
"Five more minutes, Mom." Rory said, groggily.  
  
"No way, Jose. If Mommy has to get up at," Lorelai glanced at the clock, "6:04 in the morning, then so do you sweetie. It's one of the perks of being my offspring. Now get up!"  
  
Rory brought the pillow that was above her arm to sit primly atop her head. A muffled 'unh-uh' came from below the mess.  Lorelai removed the blanket from Rory's bed and, with much effort, finally removed the pillow from Rory's head.  
  
Rory pouted as she said, "I hate you."   
  
"Aww, Mommy loves you too." As Lorelai said this, she dragged Rory from the bed. Once she got her standing on her feet, she shoved her in the direction of the bathroom.  
  
"Get yourself presentable."  
___________________________________________________________________  
  
Rory, dressed in a winter jacket and jeans, walked blearily down the Inn's stairs to the lobby.  Since it was still early and no one but Lorelai and Rory were awake, Rory decided to take a walk. _Besides, at the rate it takes Mom to get ready … I'd say that gives me a good half an hour or so to walk._  As Rory exited the Inn, her thoughts strayed to one topic she tried desperately to avoid. Jess. _No! No! Think other things. School. Paris. The Franklin. My interview with Mr. Medina. No, no, no! Even worse. Ok, let's try school again. School. Books. Books I like reading. 'HOWL and Other Poems' – the book Jess wrote notes in. Notes encapsulating feelings and emotions and just _notes _about the poetry. Bad Rory, bad! Bah! This sucks. You have a boyfriend I'll have you know. I need to think about something else. Where am I?_  
  
Rory's feet carried her to the center of town, directly in front of the snowperson competition. _Look, there's Kirk's snowman. Typical Kirk. Carrots for eyes and charcoal for the nose and mouth. Ah, yes. And Taylor's. The perfect little snowman. Three round snowballs stacked on top of each other. My God, is that his wool sweater on _Kirk's_ snowman? Mom's right. Kirk gets _way _too involved in these things. And there's our lovely snow-Bjork. Stupid pretentious, flamboyant Scrooge resembling snowman._ And as Rory thought her last thought, she turned towards the sculpted Ebenezer only to find a mass pile of fallen snow.  
  
"What the—"  
  
"Yes?"  
  
Rory gasped. It was the person she wanted to see the least and the most, all at the same time. _Talk about a dichotomy._ "Don't do that!"  
  
"Sorry. I didn't know you were so squeamish."  
  
"I'm not. I just don't appreciate being startled. Do you?"  
  
"No. Not entirely."  
  
"Yeah, I didn't think so. What are you doing up so early anyway?" Rory asked, eager to get away from the fact that her heart was still beating rapidly. She couldn't decipher if it was from her proximity to Jess or the cold or the fact that he really had scared the living daylights out of her.  
  
"Now Rory, I thought you were smart." Jess paused for a moment, to see Rory's reaction. She was about to stand up for herself when Jess interceded. "I live with Luke. The man that _always_ gets up at a quarter to five whether it's a workday or not. Now really Rory, are you telling me you didn't realize that?" Jess grinned.  
  
_He's patronizing me. Fine, well, _"read any good books lately? Or, in your case, reread?" They began walking.  
  
"I have actually. I reread D.H. Lawrence's _Lady Chatterley's Lover_ last night."  
  
"Oh! I've heard about that. He's the one with the wife that had an affair with a German and then left Lawrence to marry the German, right?"  
  
Startled that he knew about Lawrence's life, Jess chuckled. "Yeah, that's him. Impotent, too. Lucky guy." He smiled.  
  
_He has a nice smile._ Rory chuckled as well. "Yeah, well, you can't win 'em all, right?"  
  
Jess was still smiling. "Guess not."  
  
They continued walking in a relaxed silence. Until, "so really, why were you out there Jess?"  
  
_God I love how my name sounds when she says it. Shut up you idiot! Look at you! You're drooling over your own name. You're deranged. _"Noting the loveliness of the weather."  
  
"Right," Rory said, disbelievingly. "Fine. If you don't want to tell me…"  
  
"Do you really want to know?"  
  
_Don't show your excitement._ "If you want to tell me."  
  
"I was rigging the competition."  
  
"You were rigging the competition? What compe—?" _Oh_. Everything came together in the blink of an eye. _No one in town is up. They're all too stuffed and tired from last night. Jess is up. He could have stayed in bed if he really wanted to. The first place snowman is demolished. That means… _"Oh."  
  
"Yup." Jess remarked, offhandedly.  
  
"Why? You have nothing to win by doing that."  
  
"Yeah, well, since I can't make any more chalk outlines, how else is a guy supposed to cause trouble and have some fun in this town?" Jess smirked, once again.  
  
"Well, don't think I'm condoning this sort of behavior but," Rory paused, unsure what to do, "thanks," she ended lamely.  
  
"Who says I did it for you?"  
  
Embarrassed Rory quickly retorted, "what? I never said that. I was just saying thanks for the sake of saying it. Who says I don't like to hear my own voice?"  
  
"I never pictured you to be so narcissistic, Rory."  
  
"Well, there are some things nobody knows."  
  
"Looks like it."  
  
"Yup." They had arrived back at the Inn. "Well, I'd better get inside and get ready, you know, being the co-hostess and all."  
  
"Yeah, well, go host then."  
  
Rory smiled. "Yeah, right. So, I'll see you later?"  
  
"Later it is."  
  
"Ok then. Well, bye." And she moved upstairs, leaving Jess alone in the empty lobby.  
  
_Well, I guess I'd better go to. Luke is probably wondering what took me so long to get my toothbrush._ With that lasting thought, Jess took two steps at a time towards his room.  
___________________________________________________________________  
  
The lobby was bustling with activity. Bellhops were aiding Stars Hollows residents with their luggage while Michel was unresponsively checking them out. Lorelai and Rory were saying their 'goodbye's and 'thank you for coming's to all the departing guests when Clara, Dean's younger sister, ran up to Rory and hugged her.  
  
"Thanks Rory," she said, heartedly.  
  
Hugging her back, "Clara, I'm glad you came." Dean had come up behind Clara to pry her off Rory.  
  
"So I'll see you later," Dean stated to Rory, slowly inching his head towards hers.  
  
"Don't kiss," Clara complained.  
  
"Aw, come on," said Dean, exasperated.  
  
"Don't kiss." Clara pleaded. To keep her happy, Dean covered Clara's eyes with his right hand and leaned in to kiss Rory.  
   
"Come on," Clara whined, dragging Dean towards the exit.  
  
"So I guess we're off," Dean declared, reluctantly.  
  
"I guess so," Rory replied.  
  
Clara marched off towards the entrance with Dean grudgingly behind her.  As Clara began conversing with Lorelai, Dean took the opportunity to glance in Rory's direction. Much to his dismay, he witnessed a friendly smile occur between Rory and Jess. He frowned openly. _It doesn't mean anything. Rory's too nice to _not _smile at anyone_, he thought. Clara began pulling at Dean's arm again, he was brought back to the scene in front of him.  
  
"Bye you guys!" Lorelai exclaimed. "Thanks so much for coming. I hope you had a fun time." Dean, Clara and their mother left, smiling and thanking Lorelai again for inviting them. When they left, Lorelai turned to Rory and said, "ugh, let's go home."  
   
"Are we coming to get our bags later?"  
  
"Why?"  
  
"Because we're walking home. I don't want to carry 'em."  
  
With a mischievous smile, Lorelai posed, "who says we're walking?"  
  
Lorelai led Rory out of the Inn and to the area of the horse-draw carriages.  
  
Still rather confused, "what are we doing here?"  
  
"Get in."  
  
"Why?"  
  
"Why so many questions? Now do as Mommy says and she won't have to nag."  
  
Rory did as she was told. To her surprise, she found their bags stored in the front compartment of the sleigh. "Nice thinking."  
  
"It comes naturally," Lorelai teased. "Ready when you are, Joe."  
  
And with a 'hee-yah' the carriage began moving. Midway through town, Lorelai remarked, "this is the only way to ride."  
   
"I wholeheartedly agree."  
  
Pointing to the recently fumbled snow pile that was once a detailed Ebenezer Scrooge, Lorelai exclaimed, "whoa, what happened there?"  
   
"I have no idea," responded Rory, struggling with great effort not to smile.  
  
"Bad news for ringer guy. But guess who wins by default?" Lorelai beamed.  
  
"I guess that would be us."  
  
They continued on the ride in silence, Lorelai smiling and Rory's head turned toward the ex-Scrooge. Positive Lorelai wasn't paying attention, Rory broke out in a huge smile and turned back to the front of the carriage thinking, _this was one of the best holidays I've ever had._


End file.
